May 30, 2023
Behind the Scenes….
Have you ever wondered about the Trustees' function in our church? Even though we have implemented the Simplified Accountable Structure and no longer have a separate Board of Trustees, the function of ‘oversight and care of all local church property, buildings and equipment to further the mission of the church’ continues every day, 24 hours/day, 7 days/week, 365 days per year! The church’s leadership team functions as the Board of Trustees, with Jim McGarrah leading the primary focus on the Trustees' function. We all have some trustees experience with responsibilities for our own property as this experience shows many of the associated tasks happen behind the scenes.
Here are examples from the first few months of 2023 to illustrate and update you on some of what has been going on:
“Keep the lights on” – utility bills are paid each month, but we are constantly looking for ways to optimize these costs. For example, Laura keeps an eye on these and has recently negotiated a 60% reduction in our gas cost-per-therm. She has also cut our phone (including elevator), internet, and virtual meeting costs in half, resulting in annual savings of over $5,000.
Maintenance and repair – while we use outside service providers for major repairs, many of the day-to-day operational items(e.g., lights out in a closet, water in the equipment room) are handled internally through the strong support from the Craftsmen, and by Scott Sinner and Curt Halstead who spend hours on numerous projects around the church.
Go Green – we have established a relationship with Georgia Interfaith Power & Light (GIPL) and have pursued assessments and grants (including a $3,000 grant in February) for specific projects to help us conserve resources and enhance the environment.
Playground – we are actively pursuing bids to help us correct significant drainage problems and improve usability and safety of our playground. This is one of the high-priority projects under our capital campaign.
Security & access control – we have begun solicitation of bids to improve our access control (e.g. door locks) and security/fire alarm systems. This is also one of the high-priority projects under our capital campaign.
If you have questions, want more information, or have special skills and expertise that can help with trustees' functions, please don’t hesitate to contact Jim or any member of the church’s leadership team.